At least someone within the administration of Gov. Ed Rendell or the Butler County Democrats for Change has a sense humor. How else to explain the musical entertainment featured at the Oct. 16 fundraiser in Slippery Rock - a local band called "Organized Crime."

The irony of the band's name can be appreciated from two perspectives.

The words "organized crime" are usually associated with gambling and other illegal activities. So, some observers no doubt chuckled when they learned of the band's name and thought of Rendell's push for the installation of as many as 60,000 slot machines in the Keystone State. Among the concerns of those opposed to bringing slot machines to Pennsylvania is the belief that unsavory businesses could accompany the dramatic expansion of legalized gambling in the state.

And, despite the fact that the slot machine law was widely rejected by school boards across the state, Rendell is backing a plan that would force school boards to accept some of the proceeds from slots gambling in exchange for a small reduction in local property taxes.

Another humorous, but also disturbing way to view the Rendell appearance at Slippery Rock fund raiser accompanied by "Organized Crime" is to wonder if leadership in the state House and Senate might also be coming to SRU.

This notion could be based on the constitution-bending behavior of the state's political leadership in using stealth legislation to sneak through a pay-raise vote at 2 a.m. on July 7 with no advance public notice and no floor debate prior to passage, Many observers of the shenanigans in the Capitol might see the band's name as a good description of recent behavior of the leadership of our elected officials - organized and criminal, or at least unethical.

The perpetrators of the pay-raise fiasco do appear to be highly organized. Minutes before passing the pay raise, leadership substituted the 22-page pay raise bill for the very simple, 24-line bill proposing limits to certain administration salaries. A classic "bait-and-switch" operation, executed by a handful of senior lawmakers behind closed doors at 2 a.m. All of this deceit takes organization, time - and gall.

Leadership also took pains to structure their 16 percent to 34 percent pay-raise package so that any legal challenge in the state courts would require judges to reject their own pay hikes if they found any aspect of the lawmakers' pay-raise plan to be unconstitutional.

By any measure, our legislative leaders are organized. By many people's standards they are also criminal. No one can deny that they are arrogant and self-serving.

So, maybe the local Butler County band "Organized Crime" should go on tour with Rendell and offer opportunities for solo performances to House Speaker John Perzel, R-Philadelphia, House Democratic Leader H. William DeWeese and other members of the House and Senate leadership.

This story is worth a few chuckles, but it would be humorous if the underlying issues weren't so serious.